Genealogy Class: Practical tips for a successful genealogy research trip

What to expect from the class

A genealogy fact-finding trip to one's ancestral home can be extremely rewarding, but also present many challenges. Join Pam Brett for this class on successful on-site research. 

She has two goals for the class.  Pam will share tips on how to plan a trip that will help you achieve your research goals, but more importantly hopes that you will gain a new understanding of the lives of your ancestors.

About the instructor

Pam has been interested in genealogy for nearly forty years---ever since she began filling in the family tree of her first-born child's baby book. 

She was finally able to begin her family tree research in 1999.  Luckily for the rest of us, Pam's ancestors were mobile which has led to her expertise in on-site fact-finding.  She's traveled through thirty-one states and the District of Columbia. 

Why does she do it?  She naturally loves combing for records throughout the U.S. because as she states, "there are many challenges, but the rewards are priceless."

REGISTRATION INFORMATION:

The class is from 10am-12pm on Saturday, January 30th at our library, located at 2201 Broadway, in uptown Oakland.  

Pre-registration is required. Class size is limited so please register early. 

Members enjoy free admission.  Non-member admission fee is $30.00* and can be applied towards a new one year CGS membership the day of the class.

We hope to see you there!

Copyright © 2016 by California Genealogical Society

Encore Presentation! On the Road Again: Practical Tips for Successful On-Site Research

Saturday, December 7, 2013

10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

California Genealogical Society Library
2201 Broadway, Suite LL2
Oakland, CA 94612

A research trip to one's ancestral home can be extremely rewarding, but also may present many challenges. Join Pam Brett for an encore presentation of her class on successful on-site research. Pam will share practical tips on how to plan an on-site research trip to achieve your research goals and to bring home a new understanding of the lives of your ancestors.

Register online.

This class is limited to thirty participants and is a free benefit of membership. Non-members fee is $20.00 (non-refundable) and can be applied towards membership on the day of the class.

Preregistration is required. Walk-ins will not be admitted. Registration confirmations will be sent to the first thirty registrants. Additional names will be collected and placed on a waiting list in case of cancellations.

Pam Brett has been interested in genealogy for nearly forty years since she began filling in the family tree of her first-born child’s baby book. Raising two daughters and working as a public health social worker left little free time until 1999 when she began her family research in earnest.

Brett's ancestors were mobile which led to research in thirty-one states and the District of Columbia. She loves doing on-site research in the States "where there are many challenges but the rewards are priceless."

Copyright © 2013 by Kathryn M. Doyle, California Genealogical Society and Library.

On the Road Again: Practical Tips for Successful On-Site Research

Thursday, August 15, 2013

6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

California Genealogical Society Library
2201 Broadway, Suite LL2
Oakland, CA 94612

A research trip to one's ancestral home can be extremely rewarding, but also may present many challenges. Join Pam Brett for an evening class on successful on-site research. Pam will share practical tips on how to plan an on-site research trip, to achieve your research goals and to bring home new understanding of the lives of your ancestors.

Register online.

This class is limited to thirty participants and is a free benefit of membership. Non-members fee is $20.00 (non-refundable) and can be applied towards membership on the day of the class.

Preregistration is required. Walk-ins will not be admitted. Registration confirmations will be sent to the first thirty registrants. Additional names will be collected and placed on a waiting list in case of cancellations.

Pam Brett has been interested in genealogy for nearly forty years since she began filling in the family tree of her first-born child’s baby book. Raising two daughters and working as a public health social worker left little free time until 1999 when she began her family research in earnest.

Brett's ancestors were mobile which led to research in thirty-one states and the District of Columbia. She loves doing on-site research in the States "where there are many challenges but the rewards are priceless."


Copyright © 2013 by Kathryn M. Doyle, California Genealogical Society and Library.

Wordless Wednesday

13th Annual California Genealogical Society

Salt Lake City Research Tour

April 14-21, 2013

Photographs courtesy of Jane Knowles Lindsey.

Copyright © 2013 by Kathryn M. Doyle, California Genealogical Society and Library.

Announcing the CGS Boston Research Tour to NEHGS September 23-30, 2012

It's time to sign up for the California Genealogical Society and Library Research Trip to the New England Historic Genealogical Society library September 23-30, 2012.

Jane Lindsey, former CGS president and past NEHGS Trustee, leads our biennial trip to Boston, Massachusetts. Accommodations are at the Boston Common Hotel and Conference Center in the Copley Square area of downtown Boston, located about three blocks from NEHGS.

The tour begins Monday morning with a brief orientation. Since the NEHGS library is closed on Monday, participants will have the option that day of visiting the Massachusettes State Archives, Suffolk or Middlesex County courthouses, Massachusettes Historical Society or Boston Public Library.

The Tour Package includes:

• Hotel room (7 nights, single occupancy)
• Monday morning orientation
• Free day Monday to visit your choice of several repositories or sight-see in Boston
• Tuesday orientation at NEHGS
• Daily continental breakfast
• Two group dinners (Monday and Saturday) at local restaurants
• Optional pre-trip consultations with Jane Lindsey
• On-site lectures - to be announced

Linda Darby and Sandy Fryer at NEHGS in 2008.

The cost is $1674.00 (airfare not included). A deposit of $300 is required by July 15, 2012, to hold one space. Download the tour flier for full details and cancellation and refund policy. Tour participants must be members of both the California Genealogical Society and the New England Historic Genealogical Society.

Register online.

The first group dinner will be on Monday evening. NEHGS is open 9:00 a.m to 5:00 p.m. Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, and 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. on Wednesdays. The Boston Public Library, near the hotel, is open until 9:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and has an excellent microtext department with a wonderful newspaper collection.

Photographs courtesy of Jane Lindsey, Boston, MA, 9/22/2008.


Copyright © 2012 by Kathryn M. Doyle, California Genealogical Society and Library

Christine In Search of Her Roots

Imagine an intensive internship for young genealogists to learn how to research their family history in America, culminating in a pilgrimage to their far-off ancestral villages.

Fantasy? No!

In Search of Roots is an annual San Francisco program created in 1990 for Chinese Americans aged 17 to 26 with families from the Pearl River Delta region in the Guangdong province of China. More than one hundred interns have visited over 150 ancestral villages, including our own Christine DeVillier.

I recently ran into Christine and saw the gorgeous photo book she created to document her experience. The book had just arrived in the mail and Christine was eager to share it with some genealogy-mad friends. Where better to find some than at the CGS Library?

Ancestral Homes of the Lim - Wong Family documents Christine's amazing trip to Hoisan, Guandong, China in July of this year when she visited the ancestral villages of her maternal grandparents. Christine used MyPublisher's bookmaking software and her photographs to chronicle once-in-a-lifetime moments, like when she met her grandfather's younger sister, Lim Cahn Woon, who had met her brother only once when he returned to China to marry.

 

Christine called her newly found great-aunt "Goo Paw." Goo Paw helped to fill in missing parts of the family tree and led Christine to her grandmother's village and family home using only her memories of the wedding that took place more than sixty years ago.

Christine has been researching her family for almost ten years. She was one of the speakers at the recent Chinese American Family History Conference at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center and she was one of the four creators of the two-part Chinese Ancestry Workshop organized by the California Genealogical Society in the spring.

Thanks, Christine, for sharing!


Photographs from Ancestral Homes of the Lim - Wong Family courtesy of Christine DeVillier.
Photograph of Christine courtesy of Jane Knowles Lindsey, 10/6/2010, Oakland, California.


Copyright © 2010 by Kathryn M. Doyle, California Genealogical Society and Library

Found in Fort Wayne

Ten members of the California Genealogical Society met at America's crossroads for the biennial CGS Research week at the Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center in Fort Wayne, Indiana. This year's group included members Carole Brisson, Kathryn Doyle, Sandy Fryer, Jane Hufft, Mary Mettler, Frankie Rhodes, Jim Robinson, Pat Smith and Kate VanDemark, led by Jane Knowles Lindsey.

Sandy Fryer and Jane Hufft.

On Wednesday I wordlessly posted several photograph of our week in the library, including some of Curt Witcher, Genealogy Center Manager, who generously gave us a personal tour of the facility and an excellent private lecture on military resources.

Pat Smith, Jane Lindsey and Carol Brisson

All in all we were a pretty driven group - entering the library at 9:00 a.m. when it opened and staying until the last closing announcement at 9:00 p.m. (6:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.) The exception was mealtimes.

Jim Robinson and Mary Mettler.

Unfortunately, the concession that ran the in-house cafe on the main floor of the library (which served great soup and sandwiches two years ago) has been replaced by Dunkin' Donuts. That meant more time out at restaurants and less library time and consequently, a bit more fun (as you can see by this collection of photographs.)

Pat, Kathryn, Jim and Frankie Rhodes.

This year's group was a little smaller so we ate together as a group several times during the week. New friendships were formed and former connections were rekindled.

Frankie, Kate, Jim, Kathryn and Jane Hufft.

As always, a special dinner celebration was held on the last night and everyone shared some of their special finds. Here's a quick list of some of the week's highlights:

Pat Smith proved Thomsen Clark who was named in her sister-in-law's will. Pat found her in Indiana in the 1880 census.

Jane Knowles Lindsey and Pat Smith did some work on the Judge Project - the latest of the society's group research undertakings. Jane was tracking Alonzo Kelly of Iowa. She found his widow and four children in Arkansas in 1900.

Sandy Fryer made a wonderful discovery using PERSI – the PERiodical Source Index. She learned that her ggg-grandfather, Martin Burris, died instantly after being shot by "Mr. Frost" during a dispute over a cow in Wayne County, Kentucky.

Mary Mettler found the maiden name – Whitney – of Mary, seventeenth century wife of Ephraim Pierce of Groton, Middlesex County, Massachusetts.

Jane Hufft was thrilled to find Volumes 1 and 2 of Etched in Stone: Newburyport, Massachusetts Cemeteries by Noreen Cook Pramberg. For some reason the Family History Library in Salt Lake City has one volume and NEHGS in Boston has the other. Jane insists that "Both volumes are essential!" She also told me several times that she should could easily spend another week – she was finding so much.

Carole Brisson found "some good stuff" using two volumes on the New England RAWSON family.

Frankie Rhodes made progress tracking her great-grandfather, Ezra Nichols and his wife Margaret Downs. She found them on a passenger list and located information from 1886 in a Sacramento newspaper.

Jim Robinson got organized and worked with Jane on his JUDY (Tschudi) application to the National Society Sons of the American Revolution (SAR).

All of us on the last night.

If you have never been on a group research tour, it's something you should seriously consider. Lots of genealogy was discussed during these meals. When a group gets together like this ideas keep flowing even after the library has closed.


Photographs courtesy of Carol Webb Brisson, Jane Knowles Lindsey and Kathryn Doyle, August 2009, Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Allen County Public Library Research Tour 2009

August 16-23, 2009
Fort Wayne, Indiana

The fourth CGS Research Tour to the Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana, takes place August 16-23, 2009. Join CGS President Jane Lindsey for a week-long trip to the best public genealogy library in the United States.

Whether you have visited before, or this is your first time, you will benefit from Jane's individualized attention to your research goals. Pre-planning meetings can be arranged by phone or in person prior to the trip.

Space is limited to fifteen participants. To ensure the minimum tour requirement of ten participants is met, a $200 deposit is required by June 15, 2009. The trip will be canceled if we do not have the minimum, so please E-mail Jane Lindsey as soon as possible, if you are interested in attending. Download the tour brochure from the society website. The registration flier was also distributed in the January issue of the CGS News.

Photograph of the interior of the library is from the Allen County Public Library website.

Wordless Wednesday

New England Historic Genealogical Society
Boston, Massachusetts
Linda Darby, Sandy Fryer and Steve Tirrell
September 2008

Photographs courtesy of Jane Knowles Lindsey.

Amazing New Offerings at the Family History Library

CGS March Membership Meeting

Saturday, March 8, 2008 at 1:30 p.m.

Oakland Family History Center
4766 Lincoln Avenue
Oakland, CA 94602

NOTE THE CHANGE IN MEETING LOCATION!

Those who have signed up for the CGS Research Tour to Salt Lake City in April won't want to miss the March Membership Meeting. Margery Bell, Assistant Director of the Oakland Regional Family History Center, will update us on the new projects that the LDS Church is working on from new.familysearch.org to the results of the massive indexing program that is underway. Currently more than 100,000 volunteers are indexing over 1 million names a month and they are rapidly coming on-line with links to the original records. Some of the new technologies can be seen at FamilySearch Labs. Marge will also show us the family history center portal that is the gateway to the member websites available in the Family History Center and demonstrate how their favorites list is organized to provide easy access to some of the choice websites for genealogical research.

An avid genealogist for thirty-eight years, Margery Bell is the author of "Line Upon Line: A Beginner's Guide to Genealogy" that is published with Ancestral Quest software.

Top Ten reasons to go to SLC with CGS

#10 - The Family History Library is vast and going alone for the first time can be intimidating. Come with two experienced leaders who will save you hours of time learning what is where and how best to use the overwhelming number of resources.

#9. - Arrangements for hotel, breakfast, shuttles and three dinners have already been made for you. Accommodations are at the Shilo Inn - three blocks from the Family History Library and the rooms have free wireless internet.

#8. - Spend time with like-minded individuals. No one will roll their eyes when you start rattling on about your great-great whoever. Where else can you spend a week with other people who are just as nutty about genealogy as you are?

#7. - You will finally have time to organize your papers. Catch an early flight and throw everything into an extra suitcase. Spend Sunday afternoon in your hotel room without distractions and get ready for a week of research. (Believe me, we have all done this!)

#6. - Take advantage of advanced assistance. Jane and Nancy will review your research goals and objectives and make suggestions before you even go to Salt Lake.

#5. - The tour is a perfect blend of togetherness and alone time. Three dinners are planned with the group (don't miss Saturday night at Lamb's) and the other evenings are free to do with as you please. Groups meet informally in the library lobby for lunch and you can join them, explore on your own or stay and work through lunch.

#4. - Nancy Peterson, C.G., has donated her time and expertise to assist you. Nancy is the CGS Research Director and has taught numerous genealogy classes. Private appointments with her during the week are included in the price.

#3 - Jane Lindsey is a mother hen who logs miles and miles running up and down the library stairs making sure that we are all finding what we need. She has been researching in Salt Lake City for over twenty years and has led all of the CGS tours.

#2 - The company is fantastic. I've made friends that I only see once a year but we pick up just where we left off. And there is always someone in the group who has the experience in an area that you don't.

And the number ONE reason to go to Salt Lake City with the California Genealogical Society is...

It is the perfect way to get away from life's distractions and concentrate on researching your family. Imagine a week without any responsibilities except to your ancestors.

8th Annual SLC Trip: April 13-20, 2008

It's not too early to sign up for the 8th annual CGS Salt Lake City Research Tour, April 13-20, 2008. CGS President, Jane Lindsey and CGS Research Director, Nancy Peterson return again as volunteer leaders of this very popular trip to the Family History Library.

Accommodations are at the Shilo Inn, located three blocks from the Family History Library. The Shilo provides free high-speed internet access in every room.

Annette and Sandy at the Family History Library in 2007.

The Tour Package includes:
* Hotel room (7 nights, double occupancy)
* Shuttle service to and from the airport
* Three group dinners (Sunday, Wednesday and Saturday)
* Orientation meeting and several lectures
* Optional assistance at CGS prior to the trip
* Computer assistance
* Hotel shuttle to library, if needed
* Continental breakfast included

The cost is $625 (airfare not included.) A deposit of $200 holds one space. The trip registration form gives the full details and a description of the cancellation and refund policy.

Photograph courtesy of Jane Knowles Lindsey.

Fort Wayne in August

President Jane Lindsey led a third CGS sponsored research trip to the Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana, August 19-26, 2007. This year's trip was especially well timed to follow the FGS Conference which was held August 15-18. And while many attendees (Dick Eastman estimated the total to be about 1500) raced to the library to try and cram in some research time before, between and after conference sessions, we from CGS were smugly relaxed with the knowledge that we would be there for a whole week after the crowds had left. (Okay, so actually we did sneak in occasionally - the temptation was just too great and they opened the library at 6:00 am!)

The conference was my first and was as fun, informative and exhausting as I had expected. One of the high points was hearing Christopher Haley, nephew of "Roots" author Alex Haley and Research Administrator of the Study of the Legacy of Slavery in Maryland at the Maryland State Archives.


Even better was Chris's interview of our prez for Roots Television in the Exhibit Hall. Jane used the forum to tell viewers about some of the exciting changes we have made this year, including our long-anticipated online catalog.


Hmmm - it's daylight and we're not in the library. It must be Sunday - the library was closed but it was not a day of rest for us. Here we are in the dining room of the LaSalle Bed & Breakfast gearing up for our week of research.

This was the first CGS trip to the Allen County Public Library since the renovation project was completed. The library is a gem from its space-age pods where the littlest readers can curl up with a picture book to the state-of-the-art televison studio available to Allen County residents at no charge. Of course we only saw these things on the tour since we would go straight to the 2nd floor to the genealogy department and stay til closing with only a short break for lunch.

Jim Robinson is a CGS member and serves as 1st Vice-President of the Marin County Genealogical Society. His parents and grandparents were Indiana natives so his roots are deep there and he was able have Sunday dinner with ten ROBINSON third cousins.


One very special treat was a private lecture by Curt Witcher on "Fingerprinting Our Families: Using Ancestral Origins/Ethnicity As a Genealogical Research Key." Curt is the Manager of the ACPL Genealogy Department and author of the GenealogyGems Mailing List. He provided a comprehensive hand-out with reference suggestions for context which can be just the thing to help us over our brick walls. Jane arranged the talk for us which is typical of the kind of scrupulous attention she pays to the details on these research trips.

Here we all are on the last night - Jane always organizes a closing dinner so we can celebrate our finds. Starting at front left (around the table) are Sandy, Carol, Jane, Kathryn, Lorna, Lavinia, Gail, Jim and Pat. Thank you, Jane for another successful research trip.

Photographs courtesy of Jane Lindsey.